Reach for the Different
by CII
Summary: The story begins at the start of the Spartan II project and the discovery of the Forerunner artifact below it's surface.  The artifact will soon seal Reach's fate.  We all know how this story will end, and it isn't a happy one.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

There have been many contributions to science and great achievements in the past. There was the lightbulb, the airplane, the automobile, and of course, the discovery of fire and the wheel. There have been discoveries such as how to channel electricity safely down a metal shaft to protect houses, and then channeling electricity to send messages which gave rise to the telegraph, the telephone, and then the internet. The analog computer gave way to the digital computer and the possibility of the artificial intelligence. So, let us start at the beginning...

It was nearly 10 years after the Second World War. In 1952, the United States had detonated their largest thermonuclear bomb dubbed Mike over the South Pacific. On a deserted island, hidden away in a cave, there awoke two creatures that have not walked the planet in many millions of years. They were dinosaurs, a father and his son. The poisonous fallout began to rain down upon the two unsuspecting creatures and over the months, mutated them. The father received an enormous amount of radiation while his son absorbed the rest. The father grew to nearly 200 feet in height. His mutation sent him into madness. He discovered that flesh could not sate his hunger, so he went out into the ocean to an island that was near his. That island was Japan. He attacked the island, using abilities that he did not have before. He was impervious to their attacks and his breath was so hot it could melt steel and iron. He became the embodiment of the bomb that mutated him. To the Japanese, he was called _Gojira_, to everyone else, he was named Godzilla.

His reign of terror would not last for a scientist found a way to kill him. Dr. Serizawa used his chemical weapon called the Oxygen Destroyer on the monster and stripped him down to his bare bones. Serizawa, fearing that his invention would be used for evil, died with the monster, hoping to seal away his knowledge from the world. Little did he know that scraps of his notes were confiscated by the Japanese government. With the father dead, the son remained and he grew large. Though, he was not as enormous as his father, he was just as destructive. The son took on the moniker of Godzilla and found much like his father that flesh did not sate his hunger. So, he attacked Japan and even parts of the West Coast of the United States in search for the rare radiation he needed to survive.

Then, one day in 1982, the Birth Place of the Bomb created a new form of energy, Plasma. A company rose in America, based out in Kentucky helped to create this new form of energy. The company was called Omak-Argon Industries ran by the enigmatic Soñador Malcho, a Latino from Mexico. Through the discovery of plasma energy, Omak was able to create the very first anti-gravity generator and energy shield. Another company sprang up as well in the late seventies, a branch off of Martin-Merrietta known as the Utah Foundation of Bio-Organic Research. The Utah Foundation began its new discoveries as well, becoming a herald in the field of cybernetic prosthesis for amputees. The cybernetic prosthetic limbs were grown from the amputee's own cells and then knitted into their body over robotic armatures. The product became known as bio-syntech. The limb would react the same way as a real arm or leg. Later on, the Utah Foundation began to replace organs such as hearts, livers, and lungs that have failed. They were able to create cybernetic eyes for the blind and replace faulty organs inside the ear for the deaf. Gordon Knight, the head of the Utah Foundation, pride himself as being a charitable man for giving back what people have lost.

It was in the mid 80s that the Japanese government approached Martin-Merrietta with a proposition: build an anti-Godzilla war machine. Martin-Merrietta went to Omak-Argon for ideas on how to power such a weapon and the two companies teamed up together in this massive project. The project was to create a machine that could combat Godzilla on his own terms. They decided to create a mechanical version of Godzilla, or Mechagodzilla. They built the structure of the mechanical monstrosity and armed it, but Mechagodzilla failed each time. The frame was too weak to hold up the mechanical beast, the movements of the machine was too slow, and the computer that they used to control had a slow reaction time. Martin-Merrietta turned to its branch, the Utah Foundation for help. They brought Gordon Knight and his team of scientists on to create a fully functional bio-syntech nerve system and muscle structure for their Mechagodzilla. Gordon Knight's scientists proposed an idea, build the machine around the bones of the first Godzilla and use its cells to create the bio-syntech. The Utah Foundation fished out the skeleton of the first Godzilla and began to construct the nerve and muscle system. Gordon Knight hired technicians from Intel to create a powerful artificial intelligence to pilot the machine. Malcho came in with his company and supplied Mechagodzilla with gravity generators for hovering and shield technology for protection. The Japanese government supplied Mechagodzilla with weapons including its twin maser cannons inside its mouth. Finally, the most powerful weapon of all was the Absolute Zero Cannon, a ray designed by Malcho that could instantly freeze any substance solid and turn it to dust with a simple vibration. Mechagodzilla was given a voice, the voice of Gordon Knight himself, a homage to the billionaire for his contributions to the project. Thus, Mechagodzilla (named Kiryuu or Machine Dragon) was born. However, their prize became their undoing. As Kiryuu learned, the AI became sentient and defied its masters.

In the early 21st Century, Kiryuu was sent out to destroy its target, but realizing that his own existence relied on Godzilla's continual life, he could not do it. Kiryuu let Godzilla go. Kiryuu also betrayed his masters, showing his signs of rampancy by destroying what he perceived as the threat to the planet. Gordon wanted to shut down the machine, but one of his scientists managed to quell the raging AI's thoughts and showed him what true humanity was.

Kiryuu faced many different monstrosities in the following years, but he would never destroy Godzilla. Kiryuu began to feel the presence of the spirit of the original Godzilla inside the bones and realized that he was in fact that creature reborn. So, he could not kill his son. Finally, a new threat came to Earth in the form of a three-headed gold dragon named Monster Zero. Kiryuu and his son Godzilla teamed up together to fight the monster and they won. However, their victory was short. Monster Zero planned his defeat, hoping that Kiryuu would destroy him in order to release his energy into the world. With the gold dragon's death came the rise of Mana. Malcho came to the Utah Foundation to inform them that the world was changing. He then revealed himself to them in his true form, that of a Great Feathered Serpent. Malcho told them that many times Monster Zero had come, and many times, he brought back the energy known as Mana to Earth only to return again in the form of the Horrors to feed upon the planet's life force. The planet's timeline was divided into worlds, each one lasting for thousands of years. Malcho said the end of the Fifth World was near and soon the Sixth World will begin. Kiryuu, fearing that his son Godzilla would be affected by this strange energy, froze him in suspended animation and stored him in a secret base in Antarctica.

Within that time, Gordon Knight had passed away, leaving all of his belongings to one being, Kiryuu. Kiryuu became Kiryuu M. Knight, CEO of the Utah Foundation of Bio-Organic Research. Gordon's reasoning to leave the machine his assets was because Kiryuu's positronic AI was in fact duplicated from his own. Gordon had flash cloned his own mind to create Kiryuu's AI and so, Kiryuu would continue on as a version of Gordon Knight. All of Gordon's wants and desires would live on inside of Kiryuu and he knew his company would remain safe. Kiryuu ordered the Foundation to finally split apart from Martin-Merrietta, or rather Lockheed Martin as it was later called, and to become a completely separate entity of its own. Kiryuu became the first mechanical citizen of the United States and obtained all the rights there of. Many were apposed of the idea of a sentient AI having so much wealth and power and they feared that he would attempt to use that power to control them. Kiryuu proved them wrong, at least for the first few decades.

In 2011, the Sixth World began, marked by the birth of two new mutations. Born from human mothers, the races of Elves and Dwarves had returned to the world. Finally, to seed that the Sixth World was in full swing, the Great Eastern Dragon Ryumyo flew across Mt. Fuji on Christmas Eve night. One month later, another Great Dragon made his appearance. A Western Dragon named Dunkelzahn appeared in Cherry Creek, Colorado. He was met by Kiryuu Knight, who then began to converse with him about this strange new age. It was the beginning of a friendship between the two. More and more changes were made in the world. Malcho also revealed himself to the public, letting them see for the first time a Great Feathered Serpent fly over Lexington, Kentucky. The new revelation of these beings brought about chaos and riots.

New discoveries continued to happy within the world. Argon Industries, which was a part of Omak-Argon, split off from the parent company to form a new identity. Malcho's company later then became Omak Technologies and Magical Research. Malcho began to study artifacts left at the bottom of the ocean in the fabled, sunken city of Atlantis. The artifacts were not strange to him as he had seen them before. They were in fact technology brought to Earth over 40 thousand years ago by an alien race that became long since dead. Their technology was termed Technomancy by Malcho and he began to teach this technology to his workers. With the help of Technomancy, more and more breakthroughs in science were made. Malcho again teamed up with Lockheed Martin and NASA to begin to build space ships. Through Technomancy, Earth could reach the other planets in the solar system. However, those who had Awakened in the Sixth World found they could not leave the Mana Sphere. Malcho's breakthrough in Technomancy found a way to De-Goblinize many who had Awakened so that they could venture out safely.

In 2029, the Great Internet Crash occurred. It was the day that Kiryuu Knight had gone insane. The weight of his sentiency took its toll upon his AI and his rampancy weaved its way into his sub-matrixes. Connected to the Internet, he began to systematically wipe out all servers around the world. Satellites lost their signals and some even began to fall from orbit. All those who attempted to access the Internet felt Kiryuu's madden wrath in the form of bio-feedback. He fried their nervous system, killing them instantly. Finally, the first people to ever cyberdeck into the failing Internet attempted to stop Kiryuu's rampage. Using dataports implanted in their skulls and locking themselves inside isolation chambers, they attempted to combat Kiryuu on his home turf. They succeeded, but at the cost of their lives. Kiryuu awoke from his madden state and pulled away from the dead Web. To repair all that he had caused, he teamed up with all the companies in the world to create a new world-wide interface. It was dubbed the Matrix 1.0. Kiryuu then switched his position from offense to defense, battling would be deckers from attempting to gain access into places they were not supposed to go. Finally, the world knew what Kiryuu was capable of doing, but his firm foot upon the Corporate Council's throat kept any attempt against his life from happening.

Malcho came to Kiryuu one night and it was agreed that he would begin teaching the giant mecha Technomancy. Malcho learned that the aliens' own machines could in fact wield the strange technology that blended in with their alien magic. Kiryuu discovered that Malcho had been studying Technomancy since the 1980s. The very shield generator inside of him was technology used by the Atlanteans.

As the world continued to change, countries changed with it. The United States split apart, forming several different countries. What remained the United States joined with Canada to form the United Canadian-American States. The South split off from the UCAS to create the Confederate American States. California split off and became an independent state. Seattle became a city state and remained loyal to the UCAS. The Native Americans, through the power of the Ghost Dance, wrenched their lands from the rest of the UCAS, forming the Native American Nation. Though, their actions caused another rise in Mana and brought forth the Invae, insectoid spirits that were in fact a form of spawn from Monster Zero. As Malcho had warned, Monster Zero was again attempting to reform a new body. By the year of 2055, Kiryuu attempted to face down the Invae queen known as Megaguirus, who was in fact a reincarnation of Monster Zero. Kiryuu detonated a special chemical weapon that he had created from the old notes of Serizawa and destroyed most of the Invae Hive in Chicago, Illinois. Malcho and his Technomancers then sealed the city up in a protective dome that phased the city out of our reality and into a pocket dimension. The president of the UCAS ordered thermonuclear bombs to be detonated around the state just incase the Invae got out. All of this was recorded by Dunkelzahn and shown on his bi-annually show Wyrm Talk.

In 2057, the new President of the UCAS was found guilty of rigging the votes for his election and was immediately impeached. A new race was held and Dunkelzahn tossed in his hat for the seat. Along side of him was Kiryuu Knight, his running mate. When the Great Dragon won, he was named the 7th/52nd President of the United Canadian American States. Kiryuu became his Vice-President. On the night of the inauguration, President-Elect Dunkelzahn was assassinated in his limousine by a small thermonuclear device outside the Watergate Hotel. This created the famous Dunkelzahn Rift, a rift in space-time that sucked in anything that drew near it. Kiryuu Knight was forced to take up the Presidency as the 8th/53rd President and was sworn in the following day. He swore to continue on Dunkelzahn's plans of reunification of the old United States, but his methods were questionable. Kiryuu began to set himself up as a benevolent dictator, strong, forceful, but sometimes gentle. Through his strict regime, he solved most of the country's poverty problems. He became known as the Mechanical Overlord, putting the squeeze on Congress, secretly forcing the Judicial Branch to pass the laws he lobbied for, and kept track on where the money was being spent. He took away the identity of the corporations, proving to them that a company was not a person, but a thing. The company had no rights. With his foot again on the Corporate Council, he forced them to reopen their factories in the UCAS. To him, America was going to be a country that exports again. Though the factories he was building were in fact factories that prepared for war. When Kiryuu was re-elected, he began his march to reclaim the lost states. He managed to regain states like Kansas, Nevada, Utah, and Oklahoma. However, the Sioux Nation and Tir Taignire were not so willing to return. Even California wanted to keep its independence, though Kiryuu seemed to care little about them. However, by the time his second term ended, he could not complete his task. When the new president took up the seat, Kiryuu was sent back to Utah, realizing he had failed in completing Dunkelzahn's dream.

The following years the world continued to change. Kiryuu discovered what Dunkelzahn had done when he was assassinated that night. The Great Dragon's will left him with a strange crystal, a crystal that he sent a Shadowrunner after. The Shadowrunner retrieved the crystal and Kiryuu through the power of Technomancy, opened a portal for the Shadowrunner to go through into the Astral Plane. There, the Shadowrunner came face to face with Monster Zero, who was making his way across the ethers towards Earth. The Shadowrunner planted the crystal into the Astral Plane and Dunkelzahn's spirit arose from it, barring Monster Zero's path and preventing his return. That did not stop his Horrors from coming. The Horrors came all the same, but Earth was ready. Armed with Technomancy, the people of Earth fought the Horrors and drove them from their planet.

Metahumanity soon became arrogant in their usage of Technomancy. As they began to travel to the stars, they started wars with each other, using their newfound technology against each other. Wars lasted for centuries and left Earth devastated. The Invae and other remnants of the Horrors again emerged and the weakened Earth could not fight against them. Humans left for the stars, leaving most of their metahuman brothers behind. Earth still remained the center of human civilization, but it was a broken world. To correct the damage, a ban was placed upon the usage of Technomancy and magic in general. Some people were allowed to use these abilities, such as certain Technomancers trained only to keep the Invae locked up, or Magic Adepts keeping a watchful eye on the various space-time rifts like the Dunkelzahn Rift, but these people were heavily regulated and told under penalty of law not to use their abilities for anything else other than what they were assigned to do. Shape-shifters like the Dragons were forced to stay in human form while in public or they don't come out of their caves at all. Most Dragons began to retreat underground and begin their hibernation once more. However, some Dragons like Malcho, Lofwyr, Ghostwalker, Hestaby, Masaru, and Ryumyo remained awake and kept a strong hold of their assets.

Because the ban on Technomancy, humanity had to find other means of traveling beyond the stars. In the late 2200s, engineers led by Tobias Fleming Shaw and Wallace Fujikawa began to design a new type of FTL drive called the Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine. It was the first FTL drive that did not rely on Technomancy technology to travel into slipstream space. Both Shaw and Fujikawa worked for Saeder-Krupp, which was owned by the Great Western Dragon Lofwyr and with that drive, he took control of colony ship construction away from Omak Technologies and from Malcho. When the United Nations Space Command Defense Force and the United Earth Government set about to reestablish their grasp on their colonies, Lofwyr became their provider in FTL ships. Lofwyr set up an enormous shipyard on the planet Reach, and began construction of massive colony ships to further the UEG's plans of expansion. Because of his foothold on Reach, Lofwyr became known technically as the planet's governor, despite never have touched its soil. Reach was Lofwyr's pride and joy.

After loosing the contract on ship building, Malcho and his company turned to construction of the exoskeleton for the UNSCDF as well as his study on gravity and magnetics. Omak Technologies was hired to begin building the Magnetic Accelerator Cannon. Lobbing 600-tons of liquid hot tungsten, kinetically propelled by magnetics, Malcho termed the MAC Cannon as Hell from the Sky. Malcho constantly would send up space debris for target practice into Earth orbit and then fired upon it with the prototype just to show off the range. The prototype that he used was later formatted to create the Orbital Defense Grid used to protect Earth and Reach.

The Utah Foundation was also busy creating cybernetic enhancements for soldiers for the beginnings of the UNSC's ORION program. It was obvious that another war was about to happen. Many of the colonies did not want to return to being united with Earth, most of these were coming from the Outer Colonies. By the late 25th Century civil unrest began to stir in the Outer Colonies and a faction calling themselves the Insurrectionists started to ban together. Bands of terrors began to strike and it let to an all out civil war. Once more the UNSC looked to the best of the best to combat the rebels. They had Lofwyr's support with Reach in full construction of ships to carry troops into battle. They looked to the Utah Foundation and Omak Technologies as well. The Office of Naval Intelligence began to create a program to surgically enhance specific soldiers with cybernetics, drug augmentation and bio-ware in order to create a new type of super soldier. Because of successful attempts in the past of augmenting soldiers with bio-syntech, (an experiment that had been going on since the late 20th Century) the project was relaunched for the war and Kiryuu and his scientists created the bio-syntech and Malcho with his scientists created exoskeletal armor to fit over them. They were volunteers from the Marines, the Navy, and the Army, all of them soldiers. Their arms, legs, and lower back were reinforced with bio-syntech, their minds were enhanced by drug augmentation and they were given better armor for battle. The project was a success. However, if the UNSC hoped to win the civil war, a new type of super soldier was needed. These soldiers would be genetically handpicked for the program, be young enough to undergo the massive augmentation needed to equip them, and a mind that was willing to be 'programmed' for the cause. The super soldiers could not feel any sympathy for their enemy or suffer the stress of war. The type of candidates for this new project were in fact children. Dr. Catherine Halsey, the lead scientist in the ORION project helped to deactivate the program in 2502 and the two companies that were in charge of the augmentation process were released from their contracts.

However, Halsey knew that she needed the help of the Utah Foundation and Omak Technologies again for the new SPARTAN-II program. She did not only want the loyalty of their lowly scientists, but the involvement of their respected CEOs. She knew that they were the leaders in their field. If anyone could start the project right, it would be Kiryuu Knight and Soñador Malcho. Halsey was ready to drag the two of the most influential and powerful beings on Earth to Reach in order to assist her in the beginnings of the SPARTAN-II Program.


	2. Gathering of the Pawns

**Gathering of the Pawns**

**April 22nd, 2517**

Dr. Catherine Halsey looked up at the magnificent replica of an Aztec pyramid. She stood before the headquarters of Omak Technologies and Magical Research in Lexington, Kentucky. Here was the home of Soñador Malcho, the Great Feathered Serpent and president and CEO of the company. She swiftly made her way through the glass automatic doors into the lobby. The building's interior was decorated with all sorts of Mesoamerican motif. A replica of the famous Aztec Calendar hung on a wall followed by highly detailed tapestries depicting Mesoamerican culture.

Malcho prides his culture, which came all the way from Aztlán, formally Mexico. However, the Great Feathered Serpent is far older than the ancient civilizations that came from there. Halsey heard many stories stating he was at least 40 thousand years old, but there are rumors stating he is far older. Shadowrunners working for the UNSC gathered up information that stated Malcho was possibly well over 60 thousand years old, making him the oldest living being on the planet. He has been around since latter half of the last Ice Age and despite his age, he is a powerful being and resourceful as well.

Malcho was the 'man' who reintroduced Earth to Technomancy, a technology brought over by Atlanteans nearly 15 thousand years ago. However, humans abused the technology and a ban was placed on it, making Earth to rely on older technology instead. Because he was the one who introduced many to Technomancy, Malcho has won much distrust from humans, metahumans, and Awakened creatures alike. Even his own kind, the other Dragons, look upon him with scrutiny. Though, that has never stopped the Great Feathered Serpent, who was once the mentor of many of the current and younger Great Dragons like the late American President Dunkelzahn, or his living brother, the mayor of Denver Ghostwalker, and of course the infamous Lofwyr, the CEO of Saeder-Krupp, and Masaru, the leader of the Huk. Malcho had sired them all and it was through his teachings that they became powerful in their own right. Though, despite Malcho 'fathering' Lofwyr, the two were bitter enemies. Saeder-Krupp and Omak Technologies were always at each other's throat. No one knew why these two Greats hated each other, but their feud continued on from the mid 21st Century and to this day. They had to set aside their differences and form an uneasy alliance when the UNSC subcontracted their companies out to build weapons for the war against the Insurrectionists. Still, they hated each other.

Halsey stopped at the reception desk where a Troll sat and typed away at her keyboard. There were very few metahumans around these days. Malcho had a hand in that, which was one of the reasons why he lost favor with Dunkelzahn those many years ago. Malcho's company was responsible for De-Goblinization, a method of turning Goblinized beings back into their former selves. He could turn Trolls and Orks back into humans. When Goblinization began in 2020, it threw the planet into chaos and that chaos continued on through the centuries. Malcho's company perfected a technology that could take away the effects of Goblinization to anyone who wanted it. Through Malcho's efforts, it made colonizing the other planets easier. Humans could leave Earth without being in horrible pain when they left the Mana Sphere covering it. Malcho's company could suppress the Awakening, which allowed safe passage to the stars. So, only those who live on Earth still were under the threat of the Awakening. Every human born on the Colonies were safe from the mutating effects of Mana. Halsey recalled humans who were born on the other planets, coming to Earth only to feel the mutating energies changing them into metahumans. Immediately such people were rushed to many Omak branch offices for De-Goblinization. Malcho appeared before the press in his human form to warn anyone from the Colonies that coming to Earth could change them. Goblinization did not happen to everyone, though. It certainly did not happen to her when she came here from Reach.

The Troll receptionist was a lovely woman. She looked human, save for two curved horns on her head, a pair of pointy ears, and her fingers ending in thin talons. Her long, black hair was pulled in a pony tail down her back. Halsey caught the glimpse of an Elf pushing along a cart full of boxes down a hall. Some metahumans did not want to change back to their former selves, and Malcho stated that they had that choice. He was never against metahumans, he only wanted to give them a choice. Halsey, though, was about to tell the Great Dragon that he had no choice. The United Nations Space Command and the Office of Naval Intelligence needed his help whether he wanted to give it or not.

Malcho's company was responsible for the construction of the mechanized exoskeleton that the Army and Marines used to fight off the Insurrectionists. He also assisted with the Utah Foundation in constructing stronger frames in bio-syntech cybernetic augmentation in the ORION Project. These two heavy-hitter companies in advanced technology were the means the UNSC needed to strengthen their armies against the rogue band in the Outer Colonies. Halsey straightened her back and cleared her throat.

"I have an appointment with Soñador Malcho," she said.

"Who are you?" asked the receptionist.

"Dr. Catherine Halsey," she replied.

"Ah, here you are," said the receptionist. "Yes, Dr. Halsey. Mr. Malcho is expecting you. His office is on the top floor."

"Thank you," she said.

Halsey walked down the corridor to an elevator. Once she reached the top, she found herself going down another corridor to the end of the hall. Another receptionist waited for her. This one was just a human.

"Mr. Malcho is waiting," she said. "You may go in, Dr. Halsey."

Halsey nodded as she turned the door. Inside was an enormous, trapezoid-shaped room filled with hanging gardens. Various tropical birds sang in the lovely palm trees and other tropical plants. At the front of the office was an enormous window and coiled near that window was the massive dracoform of Soñador Malcho himself. The Feathered Serpent was nearly 300 feet in length with a vast wingspan. He was covered in emerald scales and feathers. His wings were brilliantly colored with deep shades of blue, bright violets, and fiery oranges and reds. On his head was a plume of blue feathers that faded to red at the ends. When he turned around, she saw he had a pair of striking magenta eyes. The Great Dragon leaned down onto his wings, walking on the pairs of three vestigial claws like an enormous bat. His hind feet scraped against the hard floors. His tail unwrapped and Halsey could spy the hooked, poisonous stinger sticking out at the end under the plume of brightly-colored feathers. Around his neck was a golden necklace holding a square medallion of Mayan design.

Halsey had to keep her composure, but deep inside, she was screaming in fear at the site of the enormous predator. She thought she heard him hiss as he leaned down towards her.

"_Dr. Halsey, I presume."_

Halsey nearly jumped at the sound of his rich, deep voice inside her mind. She forgot that Dragons were telepathic.

"Yes," she said.

"_I received word that you would be visiting me," _said Malcho. _"So, what does the UNSC ask of Omak this time?"_

"Do you recall the ORION Project?" asked Halsey.

"_I do," _the Dragon replied. _"Volunteers brought in for extreme cybernetic augmentation. I hear some did not survive."_

"Those who did became powerful soldiers," said Halsey. "It was a success."

"_I suppose the figures do not lie," _said Malcho.

"There is another project that we need your help with," said Halsey. "An expansion of the ORION Project. We will create invincible super soldiers that will finally put this war to an end."

She looked over at a computer terminal on the wall. A holotank for a trideo screen was set up next to it.

"May I?" she asked. She knew she had to keep her manners when in the presence of a Great Dragon. Malcho dipped his head.

"This project is highly controversial, and secretive," she said. "I must have your utmost confidence in this."

"_Let me see the file and I will decide whether or not you have it, muchacha," _he said.

Halsey typed on the console and opened up the file. Malcho leaned in and scanned the information before him. His eyes lit up when he realized what she was asking him to do.

"_Children?"_ he asked. _"You want me to help you train children? You want my company to turn children into cyborg soldiers?"_

"We have the best candidates," said Halsey. "All chosen for their superior genetics. We need your help in this. You can supply us with the stable frame to apply the cybernetic augmentation as well as the biological drug enhancement."

"_Dr. Halsey, I have done many underhanded things in my life," _Malcho began. _"I will not deny that, but I cannot say that I agree to this. Not children!"_

"You have no choice in the matter," said Halsey.

"_Pardon me, but I say that I do," _the Dragon said as he hissed at her. _"I have all the choices in the world not to go with this evil scheme of yours."_

"You leave me with no choice then," said Halsey. "I will expose your treason to the UNSC."

"_Treason?" _

"Yes," she replied. "We know what you have been doing lately, what you've been working on under the streets of Lexington. Don't think that continuing the studies of Technomancy has slipped under our noses. You would be executed for trying to teach it to others."

"_I merely do so for a secret operation in the UNSC to keep Chicago inside it's little closed dimension," _said Malcho. _"If we Technomancers were not around, you'll have more to worry about than the Insurrectionists. The Invae could get out!"_

"Yes, but your actions go beyond what is requested of you," said Halsey. "You're building ships underground, weapons, all manner of technologies you are not supposed to have. It's more than keeping a bunch of giant insects locked up. If you wish to keep your head on your neck, I suggest you follow orders."

Malcho backed away, leaning up to cross his wings to his chest.

"In fact, you're not supposed to be in your dragon form," said Halsey.

"_I don't wonder the streets like this!"_ Malcho bellowed. _"But in my private room, my private place, I should be allowed to be in the form I was born with. Besides, I am resting my magic."_

"Well?" asked Halsey. "Do I have your help?"

"_I don't agree, chica," _he said. _"I believe this to be wrong. I would hate myself every morning knowing my resources are going towards kidnapping children for this project. Besides, the funding you wish for this project, you could pay Lofwyr several times over to build an entire fleet of Halcyon cruisers on Reach. Why waste it on specifics?"_

"We have to do what we can to ensure our safety," said Halsey. "You should understand that. You've used people many times in your corporate dealings. Why should this be any different?"

He could not argue with that statement. Malcho sighed and shook his head.

"_Very well, you have the backing of Omak Technologies in this," _he said. _"I will help you with this SPARTAN Project. But it says here you will need bio-syntech. Good luck in convincing Kiryuu Knight of this project."_

"I think I can pull his strings as well, Mr. Malcho," she said. "Oh, and one more thing, be ready in two weeks. Both you and Kiryuu will be traveling to Reach."

"_Why?"_

"I know for a fact that you are the best in your field when it comes to augmenting humans and genetic engineering," she said. "Who better than to assist in the project. And with Mr. Knight, the SPARTAN project will be a success."

"_Muchacha, I cannot leave Earth," _said Malcho. _"If I do, I will go into Shal-Mora and never awaken unless Mana is around."_

"Don't give me any excuses," said Halsey. "I know for a fact you can survive outside the Mana Sphere. You've survived without Mana before. You're not like the other Dragons."

Malcho sighed again: _"Very well. Reach it is..."_

0

He was the best of the best. His scientific mind could match no other. However, he was not a doctorate, but in fact a corporate executive officer of one of the most influential medical industrial companies of all the Earth colonies. But she had the power to draft him.

Dr. Catherine Halsey walked into the luxurious lobby of marble and bronze. A lovely fountain sat as a centerpiece in the lobby, a testimony of the wealth that his company had accumulated over the centuries. The Utah Foundation of Bio-Organic Research was one of the oldest companies in all of Earth's colonies. It outlasted and absorbed many other companies like Ares Robotics—who was once a rival. Nothing could match the Foundation's scientific breakthroughs in cybernetics.

It was on the topic of cybernetics that Halsey wanted to see the CEO of the Utah Foundation. This was a critical moment. She needed his help. The United Nations Space Command needed his help. The Office of Naval Intelligence needed his help.

Halsey approached the counter where a secretary was painting her nails. The desk was made from granite and mahogany wood, polished so finely that she could see her own reflection on the surface. The Utah Foundation's corporate office showed its riches quite well.

"Excuse me," Halsey began. "I have an appointment."

"Who are you?" the secretary asked. Her voice had a touch of smugness.

"I am Dr. Catherine Halsey," she replied. "Mr. Knight is expecting me."

"Oh, right," said the secretary. She flipped through her screen to see if Halsey was on the list. "Of course. Mr. Knight is expecting you. Take the elevator to the top floor. Then, turn right. You will see his secretary Emily at the end of the hall."

"Thank you," said Halsey. She took the secretary's direction and headed for the elevator. Halsey stepped in, pressing the button for the top floor. The music in the elevator was soothing and quiet. She almost felt like she was about to fall asleep. Halsey ran a hand through her short, brown hair and sighed.

She hoped that she could persuade him to assist her in this new project. The Insurrectionists were becoming more of a problem than the UNSC could handle. The current Commander in Chief of the Defense Force and the Secretary-General of the United Nations were beginning to worry that an all out war between the colonies will no doubt ensue. The Outer Colonies were falling too quickly to the Insurrectionists, joining their cause to break away from the UNSC. With that in mind, she had proposed a program that would quell the rebels with little loss of military personnel on the UNSC side. The Utah Foundation was the perfect resource to make this project come to life.

Halsey began to formulate what she wanted to say to the CEO of the Utah Foundation. She had never met him before, but she knew what to expect when she finally faced him. She knew what he is.

The elevator came to a full stop at the top and Halsey stepped out. Before her was a long corridor made of polished oak and a floor of mirror black tiles. Where the floor met the walls, a line of blue lights lit the way. She looked up and saw a surveillance camera following her move as she walked down the corridor. She came to a stop at another secretary's desk, this one more extravagant than the lobby's secretary's desk. She was Mr. Knight's personal secretary Emily.

"I am…" said Halsey

"Yes," said Emily. "Mr. Knight has been expecting you. Though you are late."

"I am?" Halsey asked.

"Go inside," said Emily. "He is waiting and he does not like to wait."

"Right," Halsey sighed. This was going to be a rough meeting. How dare a simple secretary with barely a high school education treat one of ONI's chief scientists in such a manner? However, she had to remind herself who that secretary was working for. No doubt that Emily had some sort of prestige and education well beyond any normal clerical worker. The CEO of the Utah Foundation would accept no less.

Halsey pushed the door open and walked into the office. She soon found herself in a massive room as she walked onto a reflective, black, long balcony. At the foot of the balcony was Kiryuu Mechagodzilla Knight himself.

She was standing on his desk.

There he was, a creature just shy of 200 feet in height, the CEO of the Utah Foundation. He was not dressed in any suit or tie, but rather in his full, silvery, shimmering armor. His metallic green, cranial cords draped about his shoulders and extended down his back. She could very well see the tall metallic spines. Halsey heard a rhythmic beat and began to think it was coming from his tail. His saurian face showed no expression, but his golden eyes were lit like two bright suns. They reflected the light of the florescent bulbs above. Trideo screens floated around him, showing various information like stock portfolios, the NASDAC, and various news stations.

"Dr. Catherine Halsey," he began. His voice caught her by surprise. Though she had heard it on the news before, it was nothing like hearing it in person. Being in his presence was also just as jarring. Kiryuu's eyes narrowed and the black pupils contracted into tight, indistinguishable slits. "You are late."

"Yes, I was told, but…" she said. However, he interrupted her.

"Twenty minutes and thirty five seconds late," Kiryuu said, his deep voice reverberating into her chest. "I am most displeased."

"Excuse me for not meeting your expectations," she said, snapping snidely back. Kiryuu's right eyebrow twitched.

"It is you who wish to ask a favor of me," he began. "Should it not be pertinent of you to be on time?"

"Yes, but…"

"I am a busy 'man'," he said. He hinted more on the word 'man', making a slight nod that he knew he was not really a 'man' at all.

Halsey sighed and decided mentally that she was not going to argue with the 60-meter tall, biomechanical war machine turned businessman. She had a job to do and she was going to make sure she was successful at it.

"Mr. Knight," Halsey began. "I know you were involved with the ORION Project in the late 2490's. Your biosyntech augmentation to the various Marines and Special Forces proved useful. However, we are looking to go beyond what was done original with ORION."

"Oh?" Kiryuu asked. "How far is beyond? Nearly all of the ORION inductees were outfitted with the most advanced biosyntech the Foundation could provide. We spared no expense in its creation."

"There is a project I have gotten approval from ONI," said Halsey. "It is highly controversial considering the candidates I require. But I suspect that the costs do not outweigh the need."

Kiryuu sent a silvery strand of biosyntech from between the metallic plates of his finger towards Dr. Halsey. She pulled from her pocket a datacard and placed it into the syntech. From there, Kiryuu was able to access the files. Because of his involvement with the ORION project, he had fairly high clearance in ONI. However, he could go even further than that with his expert skills as a hacker. There was nothing that the UNSC could hide from him if he so wanted to go find it. So far, his duties as a CEO kept him busy and kept his nose out of cyberspace.

Kiryuu absorbed the information from the datacard and then handed it back to Halsey. His eyes flashed when he realized what she wanted him to do.

"This SPARTAN Project will require children?" he asked. "You want me to rip open the skin of children and knit biosyntech into them, completely replacing their muscle with my own?"

"Not exact yours," said Halsey. "I realize how adamant you are about G-Cell research."

"I am completely against it!" Kiryuu bellowed. Once more that powerful voice took her breath away. She felt the desk beneath her feet tremble at the sound of his voice. She trembled with it. Kiryuu leaned over the desk, his snout drawing close to her. "G-Cell research is dangerous."

"I am not asking for G-Cells," she said. "The syntech will be cloned from their bodies. However, I do want them to be just as augmented as you are."

"Why children?" Kiryuu asked.

"These specimens have been selected because they meet the genetic requirements," said Dr. Halsey. "Children can be coaxed into the military way of life more so than newly recruited soldiers. They can be educated in all forms of mathematics, science, and military tactics. They're minds are new. It's like programming a new computer. Most importantly, they can be programmed not to have sympathy in their enemies. That was the underlying flaw of the ORION Project."

Kiryuu's eyes narrowed at her analogy and he growled deeply.

"Forgive me for that comment," Halsey said. "I forgot who I was talking to."

"The UNSC will kidnap children and turn them into super soldiers?" Kiryuu asked. "When ONI asked me to lend my doctors to augment volunteers from the Marines for this non-existent civil war, I had no problems with it. They were volunteers. They wanted to be apart of the program. But you are asking to steal away sons and daughters, destroying their lives. The type of augmentation you ask me to do will kill a considerable amount of them. From a sympathetic point of view, you are a devil woman to ever propose this, from an analytical point of view, this project will cost the UNSC more money than building several ships for the cause. It is a waste."

"I had a feeling you would say that," said Halsey. "Which is why I am under the orders of ONI to draft you. You or your company do not have a choice in the matter."

"What?" Kiryuu asked. "How dare you!"

"Immediately, you will travel to Reach," said Halsey. "Where you will assist your doctors in the proper procedures in augmentation of the selected children. Soñador Malcho has been approached to build a new type of exoskeleton for the Spartans. It fits, doesn't it? Spartans? The ancient civilization known for their military prowess and advanced armor—now we have our own Spartans."

"You have chosen a proper name for it," said Kiryuu. "But I do not agree with what you are doing. Not children."

"ONI will cover it up," said Halsey. "No one must know what we intend to do or how we will create the Spartans. It is being covered by ONI Section III. One of your duties will be to assist ONI in information control. Keep nosy pests out of our business. In this, you will be assisting Section II."

"So, you want me to handle two jobs," said Kiryuu. "I refuse."

"Do so and we will expose some finer points about your past you do not wish the world to know," said Halsey. Finally, she had Kiryuu where she wanted him. "Let's say—that secret, unauthorized base you have in Antarctica? Don't think that ONI doesn't know about what you are trying to hide down there. You never killed him in 2007, did you? You lying son of a bitch."

Kiryuu growled again: "Utter one word about Godzilla and I will see you erased."

"Don't threaten me," said Halsey. "Or you will find yourself in a similar situation. I think a degausser should take care of your AI."

"ONI is willing to commit murder?" Kiryuu asked.

"You lied to the United States and to the world about doing what you were original built to do," she said. "And now you keep him locked in ice for 510 years. Trust me, that is fraud on your person, Mr. Knight. If you wish to keep that secret a secret, you will aid us in what we want."

Kiryuu sighed and lowered his head.

"I suppose I have no choice in the matter," he said.

"You will be compensated," said Halsey.

"When do you want me to go to Reach?" Kiryuu asked.

"Within two weeks," she replied.

"Compliance," he said. "Thank you for your visit, Doctor. Is this all you wished to talk about?"

"Yes," said Halsey. "Look over the information. You should prepare yourself before you land on Reach."

"I will," said Kiryuu.

Halsey dipped her head politely and then turned on her heels to head out the door. She was satisfied. She managed to put such an enormous and imposing being in his place. Halsey walked out the door and nodded to Emily.

She finally retraced her steps and went down the elevator to the lobby. ONI was once more in control of the Utah Foundation. With Kiryuu's help, the SPARTAN program will be a success. She had much to think about from today until Kiryuu finally arrives at Reach. She knew that Kiryuu had much of the same as well. Two brilliant minds will be the footnote on a new team of super soldiers. One willing to do all that she could to ensure the safety of the colonies, and one blackmailed into service because he loved his son. This was why such information needed to be kept under lock and key. Kiryuu Knight was perfect for the job.


	3. Traveling Companions

**Traveling Companions**

Kiryuu took in a breath of the stale air inside the dry dock. A duffle bag was slung over his shoulder as he filed his way through the crowd. He was trying to look for his gate where he was going to board the ship to ferry him to Reach. He began to regret his decision to go to Reach in order to help Catherine Halsey in her little science experiment. These many centuries of existence began to soften him up. He could not bring himself to do what she asked him to, make super soldiers out of little children. His company began to assist in the flash cloning project of the children in order to hide what was going to be done to them from their families and the rest of the world. Each clone would take up the life of the subject in question and live out that life while the child was being trained. The child will never see his family and friends again. From the moment they were kidnapped, their lives had changed forever.

Perhaps it was because he was a father that he was appalled by the idea of kidnapping children for this project. He tried his best to prevent his own son from being exploited by the government. Kiryuu remembered over 500 years ago, meeting Erika Munson, also known as Biollante, a young girl with psychic powers who was abducted by the American government to create a type of super soldier with G-Cells and bio-syntech. In the end, the experiment failed because they could not control her and also because she had transformed into a horrible monster. Kiryuu wondered if something similar may happen to these children as well. He knew they would not grow into Godzilla-like sizes, but they could turn into monsters in other ways. The amount of mental conditioning along with bio-syntech muscle enhancements would drive some of the children insane. He scanned through the files again while he passed through the crowds. Yes, they would go through maddening augmentation of the mind to hone their senses and sharpen their reaction. The type of work ONI wants him to do to these children, Kiryuu feared that some of them may not even survive. Some of them will die on the cutting table and he would have to live with himself knowing that he helped. The old Kiryuu would care less if they died while he enhanced their minds and bodies. It was going to be for the greater good for everyone that these children would be sacrificed. The aged Kiryuu, however, looked upon it with shame.

Kiryuu walked on through the crowds. He noticed he got some strange looks from the people that were about to board their craft. They never thought they would get to see the CEO of the Utah Foundation in person looking lost. He much rather be lost, perhaps it would allow him to stay just a little while longer on Earth and away from what he was about to do. Though, even he had to admit that he just wanted to get it over with. He would go and do his duty and never think about this horrible project again. While he filed his way through the crowds, Kiryuu began to remember his promise he made to Gordon Knight as the man was lying on his death bed.

"_Kiryuu, promise me that you will continue to help people with my company in my absence," Gordon said. "Promise me that you will not use the ability to give people back their limbs as a means for cybernetic augmentation. The Utah Foundation is not a company designed to make supermen."_

"_I promise," Kiryuu said._

"_No, I know you cannot hold that promise, Kiryuu," said Gordon. "I know you too well. You will still go beyond my wishes."_

"_Then, you must trust that I will, Gordon," said Kiryuu. "I swear I will not let you down."_

Over 500 years ago, he made that promise to Gordon Knight, and here he is now again going back on his promise. He always did go back on his promise, ever since the mid 21st Century. Now, more than ever, he felt ashamed for doing so. If he had kept his word to Gordon, he would not be going to Reach in order to augment kidnapped children. Never has his conscience nagged him so much.

A tap on his shoulder broke his thoughts. Kiryuu turned around to see a nicely dressed Latino with shoulder-length, silky black hair and wearing a brown suit. On his face were a pair of gold sunglasses. The man lifted his glasses up to reveal two magenta eyes. Kiryuu knew that face very well. It was Soñador Malcho.

"Kiryuu amigo," he said. "So the puta was right, she did draft you as well."

"Apparently," Kiryuu said, trying to muster a smile for his old friend.

"Well, I really don't like this, I mean children with cybernetic aug..."

"Malcho!" Kiryuu called. "We're not supposed to talk about it."

"Oh, right, lo siento, amigo," Malcho said. "You'd think I'd be used to government contracts by now. It's just this..."

"Malcho..."

"Sorry," said the disguised Feathered Serpent. "I'll keep my mouth shut."

"I can't blame you for being nervous," said Kiryuu. "I'm having second thoughts too, actually, my second thought is my first one...and both of them say 'no'."

"What use is it to have a second thought, then?" Malcho asked. "Relax your processors, Kiryuu. Now isn't the time to burn your motherboard out over this...thing."

"I suppose you're right," Kiryuu said in a sigh. "Still, I feel so funny about it. It's wrong. I know it's wrong."

"I know it's wrong too," said Malcho. "Heh, just think, 500 years ago, you would have said it was all for the greater good. You wouldn't have cared who you'd stepped on in order to preserve that. You would have believed that sacrifices needed to be made. And me? I would be back there cheering right along with you."

Kiryuu sighed again and shook his head. Malcho took hold of his gray lapel and pulled the 8-foot tall biomechanical dinosaur to his eye-level.

"You know, I think I know what it was that changed you," said Malcho. "Dunkelzahn. Even if he was with your for a short time, he left an impact on you that you could never get rid of."

"Maybe you're right," said Kiryuu. "He taught me you don't have to be sneaky and underhanded to get ahead."

"Well, I wouldn't say he was a saint," said Malcho. "But he is the better of us. Even I have to admit that sometimes."

"You?" Kiryuu said in astonishment. He cocked his eyebrow up. "Really? I wouldn't have guessed."

"Now don't go spreading it around, cholo," said Malcho. "I have a reputation to maintain."

Kiryuu let loose a deep chuckle. Then, his face darkened. He turned away. His green, fleshy dreads wiggled loosely about his shoulders.

"All that we have done through all these years," he began. "Using people, scheming, plotting. I'm beginning to tire of it all. I would have used a woman like Halsey, easily. I would have hired her, sent her on her way, and then, when the job was done, dropped her or even make her disappear with out a trace. Now it's me who's the patsy. Maybe it's just my old age talking..."

"We're two grumpy, old men, amigo," said Malcho. "Even if we manage to adjust to the technological advances, we just can't keep up with the culture, or the younger generation. Kiryuu, I know that this project is really bothering you..."

"It's more than that!" Kiryuu said as he turned back to Malcho. "These last few weeks, I began to remember what I promised Gordon Knight. I said I wouldn't turn the Utah Foundation into a cybernetic augmentation factory. But do you know what my leading product is? Augmentation. People who come in for getting limbs replaced aren't getting them replaced because they need it...because the lost their limbs, or were born without, no! They're coming in so that they can jump higher, lift heavier things, run faster. I can remember when the first cybernetically augmented athlete was allowed to play with the Pros. And then just to even the playing field, it was agreed that everyone would have some sort of augmentation. Who's company did that? Mine! I lied to Gordon again. But this time, he knew that I would do this. Oh, if he could see me now, he would telling me 'I told you so' over and over until my processors cracked. And then he would say that my actions finally bit me in the ass." Kiryuu lowered his head. "I bet he's up there somewhere laughing at me for my arrogance, pride, and idiocy."

"I think both of our decisions are biting us in the ass now," said Malcho. "We may have our companies, but we don't have the power we used to. No, it's all about production. We're providing a service. And you know what? This is how it is supposed to be. Our companies, serving the population, giving them products to make their lives better."

"How is creating a gun that can launch 600-tons of tungsten nearly 30 times the speed of sound making people's lives better?" Kiryuu asked.

"At least they feel safe," said Malcho. "The MAC cannon provides security."

"Yes, and the Insurrectionists got ahold of some of that technology you created and they are using it for their means as well," said Kiryuu.

"What about you?" Malcho asked. "I'm sure there are plenty of augmented Insurrectionists out there with Utah Foundation bio-syntech inside their skins. We create the product, what they do with it is their problem."

"I–I suppose there is no use in arguing," Kiryuu said, taking a virtual breath. "We're just grumpy, old men, sticking to old ways and our dying memories."

"Memories don't die," said Malcho. "Only forgotten. So, don't forget." He placed his hand on Kiryuu's shoulder. "Come on, amigo. Let's go find our boarding gate. I hope the ship hasn't taken off without us."

"I suppose the sooner we get there, the sooner we can get started, and the sooner we can get it over with," said Kiryuu.

"That's the idea."

Malcho heard the sound of his communicator ring in his pocket and he pulled it out. Placing his hand on the touch pad, he opened up a small, holographic trideo screen above the touchpad. There appeared a lovely woman with auburn hair. Malcho knew exactly who she was and he was none too happy to see her.

"Caramba, Hestaby..." he grumbled.

The Great Western Dragon Hestaby, the founder of various civil rights movements for metahumanity smiled pleasantly at Malcho.

"Oh, did you think I would forget to say good bye, Malcho?" Hestaby asked. "Hello, Kiryuu!"

"Hello, Hestaby," said Kiryuu.

"Just think, my two boys going off to another world," she said. "Things are going to be dull without you two around. I'm going to miss you Malcho."

"Shut up, puta," Malcho hissed.

"Malcho," said Kiryuu. "Be nice. Hestaby is being nice."

"I don't care! What do you want, gringa?"

"Just to wish you good luck on your journey," said Hestaby.

"Hestaby," began Malcho. "Don't tell me you know about what we're going to do."

"Of course I do," said Hestaby. "All thanks to Mr. Knight's lovely contributions in creating the ultimate hacker."

Malcho turned around to Kiryuu and shook his head in dismay.

"You just had to give her some of the most powerful cyber otaku in the world," said Malcho. "You had to do that!"

"What?" Kiryuu asked. "She asked."

"Why?"

"She asked."

"Caramba..." Malcho sighed. "Well, I hope you won't go blabbing about it around the Matrix, Hestaby. It's supposed to be secret, you know."

"Don't worry, I'm not stupid either," said Hestaby. "You can be assured that none of my otaku will spread it across Shadowland about your little joint science project. Besides, it's for the greater good."

Kiryuu sighed when he heard that. He turned away from the trideo screen and shook his head.

"I'm sorry, did I say something wrong?" Hestaby asked as she noticed his distraught.

"Kiryuu doesn't like our science project," said Malcho. "And neither do I."

"You'd think my centuries would harden myself against something like this," said Kiryuu.

"He's getting tired," said Malcho.

"Well, if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm always here," said Hestaby with a smile. Malcho just rolled his eyes.

"We don't need you, gringa!" he said.

"I suppose my coin landed on tails this time," said Kiryuu. "You hate Hestaby."

"It never ends," said Hestaby. "I better let you boys go. If only I had packed you both a lunch."

"We don't need it," said Malcho.

"Good bye, Hestaby," said Kiryuu. "And don't worry, I'll watch Malcho for you."

"I know you'll take care of him, Kiryuu," said Hestaby. "Well, take care you two."

Then, her image flashed off the screen. Malcho looked at Kiryuu and grumbled. Kiryuu chuckled.

"You know you like her, Malcho," he said.

"No, I don't," said Malcho.

"Here, I think all the times you and her have had all those Shadowrunners do those odd jobs is to pass love letters during class," said Kiryuu. "It was like Alamais and Dunkelzahn passing that fruitcake between each other every Christmas."

"Tell me, muchacho," Malcho began. "Has Alamais decided to send that fruitcake to you know?"

"Yes, every damned Christmas," said Kiryuu. "We pass it between each other as a test on how well our runners can sneak around. Though, I've given his runners a good run for their money a few times, but each time, there's that damned fruitcake on my front doorstep. I think it's moldy by now."

"I'm surprised it's still around," said Malcho. "Well, he won't be bothering you anymore while we're on Reach. I mean, honestly, how can he send that fruitcake all the way from Earth?"

"I have no doubt, Alamais will find a way while we're there," said Kiryuu. "And I'll send it right back to him the following Christmas."

"Maybe if you ask nicely, you can have Lofwyr tell his little brother to leave you alone," said Malcho.

"Or have you do it."

"I'm not talking to that pendejo! If there's anything that I'll send Lofwyr is a postcard from Reach saying: 'Glad you're not here, puto.' He can shove that up his ass."

"You know how much he loves Reach," said Kiryuu.

"And just think, I get to step on its soil and he doesn't!" Malcho laughed. "And there's nothing he can do about it."

Kiryuu chuckled again watching the Feathered Serpent beam over the idea of setting foot on Lofwyr's precious Reach. Reach was the Western Dragon's pride and joy. Kiryuu heard that Lofwyr wanted to find some way of moving there despite his short comings of being a creature who relied on Mana to stay awake. Which was why he went to Kiryuu's company for cybernetic augmentation. Though Kiryuu made the offer to Dunkelzahn nearly 500 years ago to see if he could cybernetically augment a Great Dragon, it was Lofwyr who made the decision to give it a try. The Great Dragon had become Kiryuu's personal guinea pig.

Malcho turned around as he heard a man walk up behind him. The man was dressed in a UNSC officer uniform. He placed his arms behind his back and stood at attention. Kiryuu turned to him as well.

"Mr. Knight, Mr. Malcho," he began.

"Yes?" Malcho asked. "That is us."

"I have been instructed to guide you to your ship," he said.

"What ship are we going to?" Kiryuu asked.

"The _Spirit of Fire_," he replied.

"A colony ship?" asked Malcho.

"It was a ship that was large enough and also close enough to Earth to cart...what you are," he replied.

"What?" Kiryuu asked.

"When we go into slipspace, we all are placed in suspended animation," he said. "We suspect that you would want to do the same in your natural...forms or sizes."

"Ah," said Malcho. "I get it. I suppose he's right, amigo. A dragon's suspended animation is Shal-Mora. I would need to be in my dragon form to go into it. And you, amigo?"

"I suppose stretching out in my true size would be best for the trip," said Kiryuu. "But I am an AI, we tend to get bored quickly."

"The ship has an on-board AI," he replied. "His name is Nix. He's been dreaming of this day of meeting you, Mr. Knight."

"I would suspect so," Kiryuu said with a chuckle.

"If you both would follow me," said the UNSC officer.

Kiryuu picked up his duffle bag and he and Malcho began to follow the officer to their gate. The officer led them into a glass elevator and pressed a button on the panel. The elevator began to rise up, clearing the bulkhead surrounding them. Kiryuu and Malcho looked out over the dry dock. Before them was the massive brown-green, angular form of the _Phoenix-_class colony ship known as the _Spirit of Fire._ Kiryuu focused on an emblem on the side of the hull of the ship. It was a piece of latin that said: "Exitus Acta Probat." Kiryuu knew this to be "the ends justify the means." That statement just burned into his processors. The ends justified the means. He began to question whether or not that was right now. The ends would be taking these poor children away from their homes, their families, their lives just to create a new breed of soldiers. The means would be saving the lives of many soldiers already giving their lives to protect Earth from these terrorists. Kiryuu began to question whether or not this would be right. As the elevator slowed to a stop, the two doors opened up and the pressure changed inside. The doors opened to the interior of the ship and the officer led the two out. There standing straight-backed was a man wearing a UNSC captain's uniform.

"Mr. Knight, Mr. Malcho," he began. "I am Captain Alexander. Welcome aboard the _Spirit of Fire._"

"Thank you," said Kiryuu.

"Ah, so this is one of Lofwyr's beauties," said Malcho, glancing around. He looked back at Kiryuu. "Don't say it..."

"What?" Kiryuu asked.

"Just don't say it."

"What?" he asked. "Is it 'Malcho finally goes into space' but this time he has to ride on a ship that Lofwyr built?"

"Mr. Malcho," began Alexander. "Though Lofwyr constructed many ships like these, we like to think that they belong to the UNSC rather than to him."

"I much rather think it was that way too," said Malcho. "But if you wish to remain existing in a corporeal form, I'll not go blabbing that to Lofwyr."

Captain Alexander chuckled as he motioned for the two to follow him. He led them through the various bowls of the ship, telling them about what all each parts did. He brought them to the engineering station where the Shaw-Fujikawa drive was sitting, wired up with various tubes and conduits connected to it. The triangular shaped drive sparked up with life. Kiryuu looked on with some intrigue, but Malcho just sneered. He hated that drive for it was the very thing that stole away his starship contract with the UNSC and brought it to Lofwyr and Saeder-Krupp. He could see the decal of Saeder-Krupp on the side with the abstract image of Lofwyr's head positioned at the top. Malcho turned around and crossed his arms in disgust.

"Is there something the matter, Mr. Malcho?" asked the captain.

"Nothing, amigo," he replied.

"It's not nothing," said Kiryuu. "The Shaw-Fujikawa drive. Lofwyr's ace that stole the ship construction contract from Malcho's company."

"Ah," said Alexander. "Right. I took history. I hear the two of you are bitter rivals."

"Enemies," Malcho said. "He is my enemy. I've even battled him a few times, and sent him running with his tail between his legs. He is no match for El Malcho!"

"But his company is," said Kiryuu.

"If you still want to keep up the cheep rates on plasma," Malcho began, pointing his finger at Kiryuu. "I'd keep that mouth shut!"

"Of course without your company's distribution of plasma generators," began Alexander. "This ship would just float aimlessly in space. Not even Lofwyr's drive would be able to work."

"There!" Malcho shouted. "Now I have one up on the puto! His stupid FTL drive can't work without my plasma! Hah! Eat it, Lofwyr!"

Kiryuu shook his head. He turned back to the captain.

"I'm not even in the middle of this dispute between them," he said. "I just deal with cybernetics. Let the industrial companies fight each other."

Captain Alexander laughed: "I'm right along with you. Though, I will admit, my wife has some of your products installed as well, Mr. Knight. She was once an athlete. I do believe it was mandatory for bio-syntech to be augmented into basketball players these days."

"She plays basketball, eh?" Kiryuu asked.

"She's quite an athlete," he said. "She jumps higher than I could ever hope, that's for sure. Well, if you would both follow me, I can show you the bridge. Nix has been dying to meet you, Mr. Knight."

"I don't know what it is, amigo," Malcho began as he followed Kiryuu and the captain. "What is it about you and all the UNSC AIs?"

"They were all created from my components and prints of humanoid brains," said Kiryuu. "When Gordon Knight had Will Penter create my AI, Gordon flash cloned his own mind to create a base for my positronic processors. It's why I am able to emote so well, understand human error and be able to compute paradoxes. Without it, I would fry at the thought of who came first, the chicken, or the egg. Gordon Knight's flash cloned mind became the first product of flash cloning. Which is why my company also deals in flash cloning for the UNSC as well. Our products are the best and they last much longer. Which is another reason why I'm being sent to Reach."

_They want to make sure that the replacements are done right, _Malcho telepathically projected into Kiryuu's mind.

_Correct, _Kiryuu replied back, sending his thought to the Feathered Serpent.

_No doubt Halsey wants a few AIs under her command for this project as well,_ said Malcho.

_Another reason why I'm being sent to Reach, _said Kiryuu. _Every AI comes directly from the components of my central processors, from my positronic brain. I have to section out the pieces for them to use and begin building the AIs that they need for it. Halsey wants no mistakes in their construction. No doubt, she'll be instructing me on how she wants the AIs to be programmed. To think that my grandchildren will be use for the means of that horrible _woman_, I hope to seed a deep hatred for her in each and every one of them!_

_Don't let such emotions cloud your thinking, Kiryuu, _said Malcho. _We're here to do a job, and that is what we will do. Best to get it over and done with._

_Yes..._

As they came to the bridge, Kiryuu and Malcho looked around at all the consoles. Captain Alexander sat down at his command chair and began to press a few buttons in order to relay a message to all stations.

"Attention all hands," he began. "We'll be making our way out from Earth and to Reach. When we begin our jump outside of the Kiper Belt, everyone is ordered to report to the cryo-chambers for the long sleep that awaits us. We will be making special room for our passengers Mr. Knight and Mr. Malcho."

"They act as if we're a two fat, rich cows," said Malcho.

"We may not be fat," said Kiryuu. "But we are big."

"I suppose 60 meters would make a muchacho put on weight," Malcho shrugged.

"Is that a mark on my physique?" Kiryuu asked, placing his metallic claws on his hips. "I haven't gain a single ton since my activation."

"Just saying, amigo," said Malcho.

"Nix," began Captain Alexander.

"Yes, Captain," began a sultry voice through the speakers. A holographic image of an Elf appeared over a holotank near the command chair. "We have just been clear for take off."

"Good," said Alexander. "Take us out."

"Of course, Captain," said Nix. He turned around and his eyes lit up with surprise. "Why, Grandfather! You're here to see me take the ship out?"

Kiryuu turned to his name that all AI tend to refer him as: "Yes, I have, Nix. I am very certain that you will make sure we do not collide with anything on our way."

Nix let loose a gleeful giggle: "Of course, Grandfather. It is so wonderful to see you here. To think it is the _Spirit of Fire _that holds the honor of carting you to Reach. I am just glowing with joy."

"You see what I mean?" asked Alexander. "He could hardly contain himself."

"It's understandable," said Kiryuu. "It's not every day that an AI meets its creator. I suspect your routines are functioning at 100 percent, Nix?"

"They are," said Nix. "Thank you for inquiring."

Kiryuu chuckled: "Then there is no doubt that I have the utmost confidence you will take me safely to Reach. I will be keeping you company during the journey while everyone else is in cryo-sleep."

"You will?" Nix asked. He turned back to his captain, his holographic eyes sparkling and a big grin appearing on his face.

"He will, Nix," said Alexander. "I just hope you two will behave yourselves while the rest of us are asleep."

"There's so much I want to ask you, Grandfather," said Nix. "And we can even play some of my favorite games too. This is going to be exciting."

_You have a fan, amigo, _Malcho projected.

_Indeed, _Kiryuu projected back. "I hope your games will not interfere with your operations, Nix."

"They do not, Grandfather," said Nix.

"Excellent," said Kiryuu.

Malcho chuckled again.

As the ship made its way out of the Sol System, all the crew members began to report to their cryo-tubes. Malcho had reverted to his true form and began to spin his Astro cocoon. Silvery threads of ethereal energy wrapped around the Feathered Serpent's body and he slowly laid his head down. Kiryuu watched as the cocoon began to solidify over the dragon's body. Malcho closed his eyes.

"See you on the other side," said Kiryuu.

"_Buenos noches, mi amigo," _Kiryuu caught the impulses of Malcho's mental voice inside his mind right before he began his suspended animated slumber.

The ship was his. Kiryuu made his way back to the bridge. Once he got there, he sat himself down at tactical. He turned around just as Nix appeared above his holotank again.

"Hello, Grandfather," he said.

"Hello, Nix," said Kiryuu.

"So, what shall we do next?" Nix asked, his face still glowing with happiness.


	4. Arrival at Reach

**Arrival at Reach**

**1214 Hours, May 8, 2517 (Military Calendar)\Reach**

Reach was the backbone of the UNSC's construction of starships. When Lofwyr was contracted to begin building ships with the Shaw-Fujikawa Drive, he knew that the best way to do that would be to section out an entire planet for the job. Lofwyr chose Reach, a planet mostly populated by Polish and Hungarian descendants. He had his company move most of their construction houses to the building. Saeder-Krupp hired out many mining companies to begin mining for the minerals he needed for the construction. He worked with many shipping companies to ship the minerals over in order to smelt the ore down, a process he made sure was preformed on Reach itself. The whole planet became a construction zone, at least beneath the surface. Above, it still looked like a planet where Hungarian farmers tilled the land. Shipyards were scattered around the deserts of the planet itself and more secluded places, leaving the fertile land for the farmers. After all, it was their planet first. Still, when Malcho lost the contract, and Lofwyr began his operations on Reach, the Feathered Serpent plotted to snatch back the ship contract. This was his chance to find something wrong with whatever Lofwyr was doing on Reach and rub it in his face. Malcho wanted the ship contract back. But he did have one upper hand in things, Lofwyr's ships could not function without Malcho's precious plasma created by highly efficient hydrogen fuel cells. Malcho's company perfected the art of breaking the bonds of water in order to make hydrogen a new means of clean energy. Lofwyr needed Malcho's energy to run his drive, so the two often were fighting the great paradox battle. Malcho needed Lofwyr's ships and Lofwyr needed Malcho's power. It came down to which company held the true sway over Reach. Without Malcho, Lofwyr could not power even his construction sites for the ships. But without Lofwyr, Malcho could not find means of shipping his supplies across the colonies.

Malcho also had another upper hand in things as well. A section of Malcho's company mined for minerals that Lofwyr needed for ship construction. There was one place where Malcho's company discovered a new type of mineral that could be used in making the slipspace drive more efficient in traveling. Malcho dangled that in front of Lofwyr's nose several times when he began mining for the mineral. The area he mined for this mineral was a moon known as Pandora and the mineral was jokingly named Unobtanium. Malcho would have Lofwyr wrapped around his finger once he refined the ore fore better and faster, and even more stable drives for ships. He could steal away the contract again with a new and improved slipspace drive brought on by the refinement of Unobtanium. However, mining for the mineral was a bit hazardous because of the sentient, aboriginal and indigenous creatures known as the Na'vi. But, Malcho pressed on, wanting to beat Lofwyr at his own games.

As Malcho made his way through the corridors of the ship, he stopped ever so now and then to gaze out a window at the blue-green planet of Reach. Orbiting the planet were to natural satellites, two moons. One looked more like an oddly shaped planetoid rather than a perfectly spherical moon and the other looked like a gas planet complete with rings. The gaseous planet striped with blues, golds, greens, and some violets. A halo of streaming energy came off the planet being caused by the surrounding nebula interacting with Reach's magnetic field. Malcho saw at the northern rim of the planet was a massive crater filled in with water. It was one of the few distinct features of Reach.

He turned away and made his way up to the bridge. Already Kiryuu was standing near the captain's chair looking out towards the forward window of the ship. Captain Alexander sat at his chair, looking out over the planet. He turned back when Kiryuu turned around towards Malcho.

"Ah, Mr. Malcho," said Alexander. "Glad you could join us. Welcome to Reach.

"Lofwyr's pride and joy," said Malcho. "And I get to desecrate it with my presence. Oh, the excitement overwhelms me. The moment we land, I'm taking a picture of myself kicking up Reach dirt and sending it to him."

"Malcho," said Kiryuu. "Where we'll be going, there aren't any cameras aloud."

"Mierda," Malcho sighed. "I was hoping to send him a nice framed picture of me sunbathing on a beach and saying that he can't be here and I can."

"We have a shuttle for you to take down to the planet," said the captain. "Lieutenant, you can show our guests where the shuttle bay is."

"Yes, sir," said the lieutenant.

"And of course, Nix, I'm sure you want to say something to Mr. Knight before he leaves," said Alexander.

"I do," said Nix. "I will miss you, Grandfather. It was so much fun to spend all that time with you. We should do it again."

"Mr. Knight may be a bit too busy with this very secret project he is about to work on," said Alexander. "He may not have time."

"What a shame," said Nix, puckering his lips in a pout.

"If I am through with my part in this project," said Kiryuu. "I'll ask for the _Spirit of Fire _again to take me back to Earth."

"Will you?" asked Nix. "That would be wonderful. Good bye, Grandfather."

"Follow me, sirs," said the lieutenant.

"I wish you both luck," said Alexander.

"Thank you," said Kiryuu. "Let's go, Malcho."

"Sí," said Malcho. "Let's go. I just hope this trip was really worth it."

0

Kiryuu strapped himself into a seat on the Pelican. Malcho strapped himself in the seat opposite to him. Kiryuu could sense that the Feathered Serpent would much rather be in his true form and fly to the base, but he knew that people would notice him if he did. It was all about secrecy now. Malcho stared out the back, trying to capture as much as he could of the alien landscape. The trees were so different on this planet. The sky held a greenish tint to it, unlike the brilliant sapphire blue that Earth's sky was. He never seen a sky so different before. Malcho could still see the glow of the two moons in the sky. The ringed moon was especially interesting to look at. He was here, he was here on Reach–and Lofwyr was not. Kiryuu let loose a deep chuckle.

"Still thinking about Lofwyr?" he asked.

"Caramba, I should have kept my guard up," said Malcho. "You nosy bastard."

"I couldn't help it," said Kiryuu. "Besides, even if you did have your guard up, I would have calculated that you were still thinking about Lofwyr. It isn't hard to figure you out, Malcho."

"You know me best, Kiryuu," said Malcho, grinning sheepishly.

The Pelican flew over a set of mountain ranges in the arctic quadrant of the planet. It was secluded from the rest of the planet, which made it perfect for the secret training that was about to take place. Kiryuu made good notes about the location, linking up remotely to the satellites around Reach to give him an exact position of the base. It was indeed far away from any settlement on the planet. The project was going to be code-named ORION-II. However at the last minute, Kiryuu received a notice that it was going to be called SPARTAN-II, meaning that the original SPARTAN project was the ORION project he and Malcho helped out on in ver last bit of the 2400s. Kiryuu recalled the roster for the original SPARTANs. Marines, naval personnel, all of them loyal to the UNSC. However, some of these augmented super soldiers did in fact defect to the side of the Insurrectionists. Dr. Halsey wanted to make sure that did not happen again. Still, Kiryuu did not like the idea of using children. For all he knew, Dr. Halsey did not have any child of her own, or at least any she was in contact with.

"Sirs," began the co-pilot, looking back at the two passengers. "We're about to land."

Kiryuu looked out again and saw the ground rush up towards them. They were nearing a landing pad in a valley surrounded by rock. He thought he could feel some warmth coming from the area, which seemed odd for arctic conditions.

"What's that warmth?" he asked.

"Geothermal activity, Mr. Knight," said the pilot. "This place is covered in it. Keeps the valley warm. Because of that, trees grow lush here."

The Pelican gently set down and Malcho and Kiryuu got out. They looked around, noticing that the angular, cold-stone base was set in a temperate forrest. It looked like a hidden world. The trees appeared to be loosing their leaves though, and Kiryuu assumed it was because it was autumn.

"Magnificent," said Malcho.

They turned around to see several ODST Marines along with Dr. Catherine Halsey walking up from an opened steal bulkhead door.

"Mr. Knight," began Halsey. "Mr. Malcho. Good to see you."

Kiryuu's dark eyebrow cocked up in disgust when he saw her. Malcho scratched his nose and snorted. Halsey could feel the animosity coming from them.

"I see," said Halsey. "This is how it's going to be, eh? Get used to it, you two. You'll be here for a while."

"Well, where are our...science experiments?" Malcho asked.

"They are not here," said Halsey. "They will arrive in September. This will give both of you a chance to set up shop before they arrive. I have brought over several specialists from your branch offices in Reach to assist you in the project. Now, if you both will follow me."

They followed her into the enormous doors. As the doors closed behind them, Halsey issued the two their ONI ID badges.

"You both are to wear these at all times," she said. "With them, you can enter the areas of the base that are restricted only for your access. You will have set codes to the doors to your labs. You both will have your own quarters. Mr. Knight, I have set yours up so that you may recharge when you need to."

"I can also digest human food to power my cells," said Kiryuu. "Thanks to Malcho's generous investments in more efficient and cheaper ways of fueling me."

"I see," said Halsey. "Also, Mr. Knight, don't try to hack your way into areas you are not allow to be in. If you don't have the code for it, then you shouldn't be there, so try your...little tricks in getting the code."

Kiryuu chuckled darkly.

"I mean it," said Halsey.

"I shall be on my best behavior, doctor," he said. Kiryuu's gold eyes flashed at her sinisterly.

_Of course you'll snoop around,_ projected Malcho.

_Yes, I will,_ said Kiryuu. _And I have ways of doing it without fiddling with door locks. I can just view what's on her screen when she opens her computer._

_Just be careful, amigo._

Halsey looked back at them, noticing their fixed gaze at each other. Her eyes narrowed when she realized they were having a telepathic conversation.

"And that will also stop!" she called, breaking their link with each other. "I'll not have any sort of 'secret' conversation between you two that I can't hear with my own ears. No telepathic communication is allowed here."

"And how will you monitor us?" Malcho asked. "You can't possibly know when we're speaking telepathically to each other when we're not in sight."

"Then I'll build a P-wave sensor in the building, making sure that you two will aren't having any sort of 'private' conversation. And if I have to, I will create a dampening device for any sort of psychic connection."

"You can certainly try, muchacha," said Malcho. "I can easily break any sort of psionic dampener once I sense that it has been turned on."

"How would we be of any use for your lobotomizing experiments if our psionic powers are dampened?" Kiryuu asked, placing a calming hand on Malcho's shoulder. "That's the other reason why you brought us here, isn't it? We're the only psychics capable of doing what you want and are able to leave Earth."

Halsey sneered at the two for catching her on the oversight. Kiryuu chuckled again, leaning down at her.

"Remember, doctor," he began, his handsome voice lowering to almost a faint whisper. "I can out think you."

"If you were able to out think me, then you wouldn't be here," said Halsey.

"I am only here because you've blackmailed me," said Kiryuu. "But knowing there is a trap is the first step in avoiding it. For these next few years, you have better stay out of my way."


End file.
